Leete-Stevens last month lost a two-yearcourt battle with neighbors who have been trying to get the crematory closed. But the town has decided against ordering the crematory shut down until the deadline for a court appeal passes.

Gallagher wrote the Nov. 21 decision that nullified the planning and zoning commission's decision to grant a zoning permit for the crematory. But she did not specifically order the body-burning incinerator shut.

``What we're asking the judge to do is enforce her judgment,'' said Baram, who represents Urbanowicz, Szewczak and other homeowners in the neighborhood around South Road and Wilstar Circle.

Town Manager Scott Shanley has said that on advice of municipal attorneys, Zoning Enforcement Officer Wayne Bickley will not order the crematory closed while a court appeal is still possible.

Meanwhile, the funeral home is asking Gallagher to rehear the entire case. Thomas Fahey, the attorney for Leete-Stevens, said his client is prepared to take the case to the state Appellate Court if the Superior Court declines to rehear it.

Fahey and owner Richard Stevens have maintained that the zoning permit was lawfully issued and should not be invalidated. Fahey said Friday that he doesn't believe Gallagher's decision nullified the zoning permit, even though she reversed the commission's decision to grant the permit.

A small group of neighbors has been fighting the crematory ever since Stevens announced plans in early 1998 to build it behind his funeral home. They contend that it doesn't belong in a residential zone.

Gallagher ruled on Nov. 21 that the planning and zoning commission committed a procedural error in its handling of the Leete-Stevens permit application. And since 1998, the state law regulating crematories has become more restrictive -- leading Urbanowicz and Szewczak to conclude that the operation won't be eligible for a new zoning permit under the tougher standards.